Famous Fortune Fights!
by Andy & Danielle Mayoras

Actors

Would comedian Richard Pryor be laughing or rolling over in his grave? When Quincy Jones sat down for a recent interview with Vulture, he casually inferred that Marlon Brando slept with both Marvin Gaye and Richard Pryor.

The comment quickly snowballed when Pryor's widow, Jennifer Lee-Pryor, took to social media to confirm the Richard Pryor tryst with Marlon Brando:

Hey girl: It was the 70's: enough cocaine and good music-one could f*** a radiator and send it flowers in the morning! # noshame https://t.co/Aea0lLDAhG

She commented that Pryor would have no shame about Quincy's comments and was open in his early comedy routines about his homosexual encounters. Jennifer felt that Pryor would have enjoyed Quincy Jones' revelation.

It's a growing Hollywood trend ... tens of millions of dollars gone? Sue the guy who handled your finances! But, legally, who should shoulder the blame -- and more critically, pay the price -- when a celebrity once worth hundreds of millions sees most of it disappear? And what lessons are there for those of us whose net worth hasn't quite hit eight or nine figures?

Johnny Depp is the poster child for this dilemma after his reported net-worth of $200 million dwindled to a small fraction of what it once was. But Depp is far from alone. This summer, Alyssa Milano filed a $10 million lawsuit against her former business manager claiming financial ruin. And Lisa Marie Presley recently announced, through her attorney, that she is in the same boat, preparing to sue her former business manager for $100 million in losses.

The Depp lawsuit appears to be the most heated at the moment. Recently, Depp's former financial managers and advisors added a new lawyer to an already-ugly legal battle by filing to foreclose against two of Depp's houses, including his primary residence. The lawsuit alleges that when Depp was in deep financial trouble, his financial management company, TMG, came to his rescue with a five million dollar loan. TMG says it loaned the money on a short-term basis, to pay off another bank loan that was about to come due in late 2012. Depp agreed to sell off some his assets, including his beloved yacht (which he purchased for $10 million and spent another $8 million renovating) and repay TMG shortly thereafter, according to the lawsuit.

The moment the lawsuit started, it was ugly. Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb have moved well past ugly into uncharted territory in their courtroom battle that addresses views about life itself.

As we wrote after the case began, Vergara and Loeb's disagreement teaches an important lessons for anyone considering IVF or other mean of assisted reproductive technology. But there's a greater lesson now. When the courtroom is the backdrop for a relationship of love turned to hate, things can rapidly spiral out of control.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard provided a good example recently. But even they -- despite dramatic accusations of spousal abuse, infidelity, blackmail, and more -- found a way to put their differences aside, reach a settlement, and end the fighting. Vergara and Loeb don't appear to be heading down the same path.

Neither is willing to blink about what should happen to the two frozen embryos that they had created while together as a couple. At the time, Vergara and Loeb tried to use In Vitro Fertilization to conceive a child. They split after one failed attempt, before trying for a second time. Two female embryos were left frozen.

At the start of the IVF process, Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb both signed a form directive from the medical facility. This form included an agreement with different options for what would happen to the embryos if not implanted. They filled out the form and both signed it, indicating that if either of them died, the embryos would be thawed, which would destroy them. The embryos would only be implanted or otherwise used if both Vergara and Loeb agreed to it. If not, the embryos would remain frozen indefinitely.

The death of Gene Wilder saddened Willa Wonka fans across the globe — not to mention fans of Blazin’ Saddles, Young Frankenstein, and many others. When his family issued a statement saying that Alzheimer’s disease claimed his life, it served as a valuable lesson. Alzheimer’s disease is a killer. As Wilder’s family aptly described it, it’s an “illness-pirate.”

Gene Wilder is far from the first famous actor to fall victim to Alzheimer’s. Jimmy Stewart, Peter Falk, Charlton Heston, and Rita Hayworth are just a few others. And of course the disease has attacked celebrities from many different industries, including Hollywood producers like Aaron Spelling, politicians like Ronald Reagan, singers like Etta James and Glen Campbell, and sports celebrities like basketball coach Pat Summitt and ball manager Sparky Anderson.

Sadly, there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease. It always leads to death. While the official cause-of-death for most celebrities who suffered from the disease is usually listed as another affliction, such as a pneumonia or sepsis, Alzheimer’s disease is the real culprit for millions of Americans, causing the brain to decline until the body succumbs. Gene Wilder’s bout with it is notable because his family attributed his death entirely to Alzheimer’s disease, whereas in most celebrity deaths it is listed only as a contributing factor, if at all.

What better way to start the new year than by counting down Trial & Heirs Top Ten Celebrity Legal Battles of 2015, complete with lessons?

1. Bill Cosby vs. many woman - Andrea Constad is one of dozens of women who have sued Cosby for defamation, accusing the comedian and actor of lying when he denied sexually abusing them years ago. In Constad's civil lawsuit, Cosby's deposition was unsealed, revealing that he admitted giving women quaaludes and having intercourse with them. He says both the drug use and sex were consensual. Recently, a Pennsylvania district attorney brought charges against Cosby for sexual assault based on the 2004 encounter with Constad.

Lesson: When victims of assault or other injuries wait too long, they lose the right to sue under the statute of limitations. The specific length of time varies based on what state the events happened in and what type of claim is brought. That's why most of the accusers are suing Cosby for defamation, rather than sexual assault. Even criminal cases have a time limitation on when cases can be brought. This new criminal case against Cosby was brought not long before the 12-year statute of limitations expired. Anyone who feels they have a claim to sue, for assault or any other reason, should act promptly and not wait until it is too late.

The news broke recently that the divorce proceeding between Big Bang Theory actress Kaley Cuoco and professional tennis player Ryan Sweeting just became a great deal more complicated than originally reported.

Perhaps that shouldn’t be surprising. After all, Cuoco recently was named as Forbes’ highest paid TV actress for 2015 (in a tie with Sofia Vergara), with $28.5 million in earnings, including an impressive payday of one million dollars per episode. Comparatively, Sweeting — who boasts only one career tournament win and has been battling injuries — has an estimated net worth of only two million dollars, about $42 million less than Cuoco’s reported net worth.

So why should anyone be surprised that the spouse worth less is asking for financial support from the big bread winner?

Kaley Cuoco played a smart game from the start. Even though she and Ryan Sweeting were married after only six months of dating, Cuoco and Sweeting had a prenuptial agreement, signed on November 20, 2013 — more than a month before their wedding on December 31, 2013. With a good prenup in place, a drawn-out match over financial issues like spousal support can be largely avoided.

Note the important qualifier here — “largely” avoided is not “completely” avoided. The existence of a prenuptial agreement does not end the match. It certainly gives Cuoco a big lead in the battle over spousal support though.

James Dean was the iconic rebel without a cause. The James Dean Estate, on the other hand, has been driven by a cause -- maximizing the value of his image and likeness. But was it taken too far when his heirs sued Twitter?

This is installment #16 of our Estate Planning Lessons From The Stars series, which is based on the Celebrity Legacies TV show for which we provide commentary as the estate legal experts. See other articles in the series here.

Perhaps no Hollywood legend has lasted so long, and left such an impact, as James Dean. After dying in a tragic car crash at age 24, in 1955, Dean continued to appear among the top of highest earning deceased celebrities year after year, including being in the top ten as recently as 2012, when his estate earned about five million dollars. Not bad for actor who only starred in three major films.

Twitter Updates

Legal Disclaimer

Legal Disclaimer

Nothing in this blog should be relied on as legal advice. The information contained herein does not create an attorney/client relationship. The articles posted are intended for entertainment and general information purposes only. Laws vary state by state. Anyone seeking legal advice for a specific situation should consult a qualified probate lawyer or similar qualified professional in the appropriate state.